More than a thousand Bangladeshis have been detained by Indian law enforcement in Gujarat on charges of illegal immigration. The arrests took place across the cities of Surat and Ahmedabad, according to a report by NDTV.
Citing information from Indian news agency PTI, the report states that the crackdown was launched under the orders of Gujarat's Home Minister, Harsh Sanghvi, aiming to identify undocumented Bangladeshi immigrants living in the state.
The operation, conducted early Saturday morning, involved coordinated efforts by Gujarat Police, the Special Operations Group (SOG), Crime Branch, Anti-Human Trafficking Unit (AHTU), and local police teams. Authorities confirmed that 890 Bangladeshis were arrested in Ahmedabad and another 134 in Surat.
Officials stated that all those arrested had entered India without valid documents and were residing there using forged papers. This is reportedly the largest operation ever carried out by Gujarat Police against illegal immigrants.
Rajdeep Singh Nakum, Deputy Commissioner of the SOG, said the detainees would undergo questioning. After investigations are complete, they will be deported back to Bangladesh.
Sharad Singhal, Joint Commissioner (Crime Branch), explained that the crackdown was carried out under the direct instructions of the Home Minister, Police Commissioner, and the Director General of Police. He added that a similar operation last year, in April 2024, had resulted in the arrest of 127 Bangladeshis, with 77 subsequently deported.
Speaking to reporters after a video conference with senior police officials, Home Minister Harsh Sanghvi praised the operation as a "historic success." He confirmed that the arrested Bangladeshis had travelled through various parts of India before settling in Gujarat using fake documents.
He also noted that many of the detainees were involved in drug trafficking and human trafficking. Alarmingly, two of four recently arrested Bangladeshis were found to have links with Al-Qaeda sleeper cells. Authorities have launched a detailed investigation into the activities of the detained Bangladeshis in Gujarat.
